Trends come and go at lightning speed. One day everyone’s talking about a viral dance challenge, and the next it’s an unexpected celebrity moment or clever new meme format. Keeping up with what’s trending can feel dizzying! But for businesses with a smart social media strategy, capitalizing on trending topics presents a major opportunity. You can hugely expand your brand’s visibility and engagement by riding the momentum of what’s hot and capturing people’s attention in the moment. The key is knowing how to naturally incorporate relevant trends into your social media content. Here are some tips for taking advantage of trends the right way:
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Research and Monitor What’s Trending
The first step is having a system for identifying current trends as they emerge. Spend time each day scrolling through trending topics and hashtags on various social platforms. See what’s generating a lot of buzz organically in your industry and with your target audience. Utilize tools like Google Trends, X’s Explore page, Reddit’s Popular Feeds, and social media monitoring apps to track trending keywords, topics, and conversations. The more in tune you are with what’s resonating, the faster you can react.
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Only Jump On Relevant Trends
Not every single trend will make sense for your brand’s specific audience, voice, and marketing goals. Resist the urge to latch onto anything just for the sake of capitalizing on hype. The trends you embrace should feel like an authentic, natural fit aligned with your brand identity and values.
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Add Value and Personality
When incorporating a trend into your social media content, avoid just repurposing or regurgitating exactly what others are already doing. Your unique spin and voice is what will make the trend feel fresh and valuable for your audience. Focus on creating share-worthy content that encourages engagement. You could put your own branded spin on a popular meme template, share a relatable hot take on a trending industry issue, or demonstrate your expertise by addressing key questions around a buzz-worthy topic. Get creative and have fun!
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Stay Current and Relevant
Trends are inherently time-sensitive and constantly evolving. Your trending social media content will quickly feel dated and out-of-touch if you don’t stay on top of it. Don’t milk the same old trend for weeks or you’ll seem behind the curve at best, and tone-deaf at worst. Check daily for fresh new trends bubbling up you can incorporate into your feed. And be nimble enough to refresh your content strategy and pivot to a newer, hotter trending topic when the current one starts to dip in momentum and chatter.
Not every attempt at riding a trend will be a win. That’s ok – it’s simply part of the learning process! Review your social media metrics to analyze what type of trending content resonated most (and least) with your audience. Evaluate factors like post engagement, clicks, shares, audience growth, and even sales impact if applicable. Use those key data insights about what worked to fine-tune and optimize your trending content strategy for next time. Make adjustments until you find your brand’s unique winning formula for tapping into trends.
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Final Thoughts
Incorporating trending topics into your social media content is a surefire way to stay relevant and buzzworthy. You’ll attract more followers, boost engagement, and authentically connect with your online audience around shared interests and collective experiences. So get ready to ride the trending wave!
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This article was first published on 15th May 2024
chidiogo-akaelu
Chidiogo Shalom Akaelu holds a degree in English and Literary Studies, from the University of Nigeria. She is a freelance writer, editor and founder of Loana Press, a budding online publishing outlet.
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